Asia-Cast

Asia Cast for Thursday 12th of February

In this Bulletin…

- Declassified documents reveal Tibet considered a sovereign state prior to China’s 1949 military action;
- US concerned for Chinese human rights activist; and
- Divine Performing Arts receive ovation at final show in South Korea.

But first, here’s our SOH focus on China.
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A human rights group has released previously classified documents detailing international opinion that Tibet was a sovereign state at the time Chinese forces entered the country in 1949 and was far from needing “liberation”, says The Epoch Times.

The Canada Tibet Committee released the information compiled by the Canadian government in the response from the Chinese regime’s declaration of a new annual holiday in Tibet. The newly named “Serfs Emancipation Day” is intended mark the so-called liberation of the Tibetan people by the Chinese military.

“[These documents] add to the case that China has rewritten history in regards to Tibet”, says the Canada Tibet Committee’s executive director Dermod Travis.

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Behind all of the rhetoric and empty promises, human rights in China continued to slide downwards during the 2008 Beijing Olympics.

According to one human rights group, approximately 8,000 Falun Gong practitioners were arbitrarily detained during the Games and more than 100 were killed while in custody.

This, and other appalling human rights abuses, were documented in detail and presented to the United Nations Human Rights Council before it concluded an annual human rights review of China.

The facts were documented in an annual report released by the Falun Dafa Information Center this week.

The report also said that lawyers who defended Falun Gong were harassed, with some being subject to monitoring, disbarment, and even detention and torture.

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Just days before US Secretary of State is due to arrive in Asia on her first foreign visit, the State Department has said it is concerned over the indefinite postponement of a Chinese blogger’s trial.

“We are disturbed that prominent Chinese human rights activist Huang Qi remains in detention,” acting deputy spokesman Gordon Duguid told reporters. “We call on the Chinese government to release Mr. Huang as soon as possible.”

Huang was detained last June after working to help the families of children killed in last year’s Sichuan Earthquake because of the collapse of sub-standard school buildings, Duguid said.

Huang’s trial was scheduled for February 3 but was indefinitely postponed a day before it was supposed to begin.

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The final performance of the Divine Performing Arts 2009 World Tour in the South Korean capital, Seoul, reached a crescendo as an impassioned audience begged for five curtain calls, says The Epoch Times.

The appreciative audience included many celebrities from Korean literary and art circles.

Renowned Korean baritone Mr Shin Gyugon said, “No other performance could compare with this. The inner meaning of the performance shows the nobility of life.”

Divine Performing Arts is inspired by the spirit of ancient China before its culture eroded under communism. This is perhaps one reason behind the Chinese Communist Party’s unsuccessful attempt to interfere with the shows by putting pressure on theatres to break their venue contracts.

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A magnitude 7.0 earthquake has occurred off the northeast tip of Indonesia’s Sulawesi island. There were no immediate reports of damage or injuries.

Indonesia’s meteorology and geophysics agency issued a tsunami warning immediately after the quake struck, but cancelled it about one hour later.

The US Geological Survey initially put the magnitude at 7.5, but later revised it down to 7.0. The Hawaii-based Pacific Tsunami Warning Centre sent a bulletin saying there was “no destructive widespread tsunami threat” based on available data.

The Indonesian archipelago straddles several continental plates in an area known as the Pacific Ring of Fire where seismic and volcanic activity is recorded on an almost daily basis.

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There has been a reshuffle of North Korea’s military chiefs. The state’s reclusive leader Kim Jong-Il made the announcement ahead of next month’s parliamentary elections

The National Defence Commission, led by Kim Jong-Il since 1998, is the most powerful body in the country, supervising its 1.1 million-member armed forces.

North Korea usually announces a shake-up of its military and cabinet after parliamentary elections, which are due to be held on March 8 this year

The new rubber-stamp legislature, known as the Supreme People’s Assembly, will reappoint Kim Jong-Il as chairman of the National Defence Commission.

The North failed to hold the parliamentary election last August amid reports that leader Kim had suffered a stroke that month.

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Experience true Chinese culture like never before as Divine Performing Arts presents classical Chinese dance and music in gloriously colourful and exhilarating shows.

The Divine Performing Arts world tour is coming to a city near you soon. Don’t miss your chance to see this unmissable performance, visit www.divineperformingarts.org today!

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‘Asia Cast… keeping you across the top headlines from Asia and the World.’